Newholm

The Inn beneath the Pantiles

Ye Olde Beehive Inne is whitewashed and low, under a pantile roof with three dormers, two of them catslide dormers that carry the roofline down almost to the door. Beside it stands a former Methodist chapel, coursed stone under pantiles, its round-headed windows now blocked and laced with interlacing glazing bars. The two buildings stand side by side in Newholm, a small linear village in the coastal hinterland behind Whitby, fields to the east and stone walls along the road.

The Beehive is probably 17th century, a former drovers' inn, Grade II listed for its coursed squared stone, its old Yorkshire sliding sashes and those dormers. It runs now as a restaurant more than a drinking pub, and there is no cask ale. The kitchen leans local and ambitious. You can order Whitby plaice with leeks, king scallops and crab velouté, or Esk Valley lamb with lavender lentils, goat's-cheese potato purée and Newholm elderberry-and-honey syrup. There is a ham-shank and pork-fillet terrine with pineapple and vanilla relish, and, further down the same menu, something described simply as posh fish and chips.

Rebuilding the Board Inn

None of that would have been recognisable to the couple who took the place on in April 1946. Pamela and C. F. R. Hilton bought what was then the Board Inn — two bar rooms, two attics, one tap, an outside privy and ten or so spaniel-type dogs — from Miss Baxendale, for £2,000 plus £800 for the contents. A neighbour, Syd Easton — by turns cobbler, butcher, builder, planner, barman and adviser — helped rebuild it with Tom Waller, reusing curved sandstone from a burnt-out mill that looked so old the planners who came to inspect took a brand-new wall for centuries-old work.

Newholm in 1946 was about thirty cottages, a chapel, a telephone box and no shops, and locally the name was said "Newum." When the Hiltons' young son arrived with a southern accent, a neighbour told him: "Talkin' Yorkshire? Tha'll get thy tongue tied in a knot!"

High Farm and Domesday

High Farm has PennyClare, an interiors and gift shop that sisters Penny and Clare opened in 2011 in a converted horse stable and later expanded with a tea room. When it is running it has done handmade scones with bramble, strawberry or raspberry jam, deep-filled quiches, and burgers built from local beef, Yorkshire Blue and bacon from Landers of Whitby, with vegan versions alongside. Readers of This England voted it a Finest Tea Rooms winner in 2017. Hours can be uncertain, so it is worth checking before you visit.

Newholm is old enough to sit in Domesday, though barely on its own terms: the 1086 survey folds it into a combined entry covering thirteen places and apportions it an estimated 3.9 households.

Footpaths and Practical Access

The walking is the reason to stay. A circular route of about 13.4 kilometres links Whitby, Newholm, Raithwaite and Sandsend, climbing 282 metres over three and a half to four hours through open fields, woodland and beach. Stretches run along road before the fields and sand take over. Footpaths cross the village, one over a bridge across Newholm Beck, and Sandsend and its beach are about a mile off.

You reach Newholm just off the A171 between Whitby and Guisborough. The nearest station is Ruswarp, a little over a mile and a half away as the crow flies; Whitby, two miles east, keeps a seasonal park-and-ride with 450 spaces. There is no public bus through the village — the only service listed is a permit-only school run.

Onward to Whitby and the Coast

From the eastern edge the land opens out into the same fields, the views coming and going between the houses. It makes a good stop for lunch and a walk on the way to Whitby, the abbey or the coast.